LoveSick Harts
by reilert79
Summary: Someone is trying to split up Jonathan and Jennifer. They have never taken the bait before, will they this time?
1. Breaking Her Hart

Breaking Her Hart

***Willow Pond***

Jennifer was sitting in the den, waiting for Jonathan to come home.

She was all dressed up. They were supposed to be going to a friend's house for dinner. At this point, they were 10 minutes late.

Max had brought the mail in earlier, and set it on the piano. She started going through it, and found a letter addressed to her with no return address. She opened it and found a note.

"I have seen you many times now, you are so beautiful. You and I would be great together. I'll show you".

No signature.

She was a little unnerved by the note, but terribly.

Jonathan pulled up then, and she left the note on the piano, in the mail.

She headed out the door to meet him.

Their party lasted about 5 hours. They ate, danced, and laughed with their friends. They got home around 11, and came in the house. Jennifer was exhausted, and headed up to bed. Jonathan was going through the mail and then he was going up.

He found the letter she had left there, and read it. He was instantly frightened. He went upstairs and found her washing her face.

"When did you plan on telling me about this?"

"Telling you about what?"

"This letter. Were you ever going to tell me?"

"Jonathan, I don't like the tone you're taking. If you want to talk about this, we can, but at the very least, let's be nice to each other while we do".

"Answer my question".

She stared at him.

"Jonathan, what has gotten into you?"

"I don't like you keeping things from me".

"I don't like you accusing me of keeping things from you".

"Well, don't keep something from me and then there won't be an accusation".

"Jonathan, I am not going to continue in this conversation any longer". She moved to walk past him.

He blocked her path.

"When did this letter come?"

"It came tonight. I opened it just before you picked me up".

She had a fire in her deep set whiskey eyes.

"Ok. Is this the first letter you received?"

"Obviously I have received letters before, Jonathan. It is the mail, after all".

"Jennifer, you know what I mean."

"I don't know who wrote that, so I cannot tell you if they have written me before. That is the first letter of that nature that I have received".

"Ok, now was that so hard?"

Jennifer couldn't understand him.

"Well, when you treat me like a common criminal, yes, it is that hard."

She turned away from him and climbed into the bed

He put the letter in his nightstand and went to change clothes.

By the time he came out, she was asleep.

She was sleeping all the way over on her side.

He hated that he had made her angry, but he was only trying to protect her.

He walked over to her side of the bed, and leaned down and kissed her forehead, and then went back to his side of the bed, and climbed in beside her.

***A few hours later***  
They were sleeping.

Someone buzzed the gate.

Jennifer nudged Jonathan.

"Answer it".

"I love you too honey". He rolled over.

She nudged him again.

"Answer it!".

He reached for her hand with one of his, and for the intercom button with the other.

"Who is it?"

"Delivery for Mrs. Hart".

"What are you delivering?"

"I don't know. It's in a box. I am just the courier".

"Come on up".

Jennifer got up, put her robe and slippers on and headed downstairs. He was right behind her.

"Jennifer, don't open that yet".

"I am perfectly capable of choosing for myself whether or not to answer a door."

She glared at him and then opened the door. She signed for the delivery.

"I apologize for the late hour, but the sender paid extra for it to be delivered between midnight and 2 a.m.".

"It's alright, thank you".

She closed the door and went over to the bar and got out the scissors. She opened the package.

She pulled out a small vase, and several plates.

There was a note inside.

"We could eat off these plates when we have breakfast in bed together. And then afterwards, I will make all your dreams come true".

She didn't really know what to make of it, and she didn't want to argue with Jonathan. So, she put it all back in the box and left it there on the table. She headed back upstairs.

She passed Jonathan on the landing.

"Are you going to tell me about this one?"

"If you are that interested, go look at it for yourself".

She got back in the bed and went back to sleep.

He went and looked at the package and then headed up to bed.

He wanted to ask her about it, but he didn't want to wake her up.

He decided to let her sleep, and they would talk about it in the morning.

***The next morning***

Jennifer was grumpy when she woke up, as she usually was when they were awoken in the middle of the night.

She was downstairs getting a cup of coffee when Jonathan came in.

Max was making breakfast.

"Mr. and Mrs. H., the exterminator is coming today. So, you might want to crack a window tonight before bed to let the smell out".

Jennifer looked down at her coffee.

"No thanks, our bedroom is chilly enough".

She downed her coffee, put the cup in the sink, and headed out of the kitchen.

She went and took a picture of the address label, and saw that the return address was from the delivery service, not the sender itself.

She went into the study and contacted the delivery service.

She had just hung up with them when Jonathan came in.

"Our bedroom wouldn't be so chilly if you weren't keeping things from me".

"Jonathan, I am not going to argue with you about this. I am not keeping things from you. The letter came, I opened it and then you picked me up. When we got home, the letter was in the mail. If I was hiding things from you, would I have left it in plain sight? You were there when the package came in, and I opened it in front of you. So, please tell me how I am keeping things from you".

"If you were going to tell me about the letter, why didn't you tell me about it in the car on the way to the dinner party?"

"Because it slipped my mind. Where do you get off accusing me of keeping things from you? When have I ever done that?"  
"I'll tell you where I get off accusing you of keeping things from me- anytime I think you are, which is now".

"Well, if you don't know me well enough by now to know that I am not keeping things from you and that I am not an open book, then we don't have the marriage that I thought we had. Thanks for breaking my heart".

She stalked past him and went upstairs.

He went to the car and retrieved a large brown envelope.

He went upstairs and found her crying in the bathroom.

"If you aren't keeping things from me, if you are such an open and honest book, then why would someone send these to my office?"

He tossed them on the vanity and stormed out.

She opened the envelope and found pictures of her kissing another guy. They were all in black and white.

There was a note in there.

"I just love kissing your wife".

Jennifer sighed.

She looked at the postmark on the envelope, and saw that it had been mailed over the weekend. It had arrived at Jonathan's office yesterday morning.

No return address. No name on the note. She dug the letter out of his nightstand and compared the handwriting.

It appeared to be the same.

She looked back at the pictures again. She flipped them over to see if they had any writing on the back.

In the bottom lower right hand corner, she found a date.

10/14/71. Years before she met Jonathan.

She realized that the man in the pictures was Preston Mallard, a guy she dated when she lived in New York.

She had a sinking feeling that Preston wasn't the one behind this though, because he was happily married, had a few kids, and would never hurt anyone.

Jennifer swallowed her pride and called Jonathan's office. She left a message with the secretary asking if he wanted to have lunch.

She was putting away some laundry when their private line rang.

She picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Why do you want to have lunch with me?"

"To explain something to you".

"No need. I can see things clearly."

"So, I guess I will see you tonight then?"

She was trying to sound hopeful.

"We have dinner reservations at La Scala at 6. I will meet you there".

"Ok". She hung up the phone.

She put the notes and pictures in her phone.

Around 11, Max let a delivery truck come up.

"Hi, we are here to pick up some things from the bedroom. Mr. Hart's specific instructions".

"Ok, bedroom is upstairs at the end of the hall".

Jennifer was downstairs working in the study.

She had no idea they were here.

One of the delivery men came and found her.

"Ma'am are you Jennifer Hart?"

"Yes".

"We were delivery men hired by your husband. He asked us to come pick some things up. We just wanted to give you a business card so that you will know how to contact us".

"Ok thank you". She took the card from him.

After they left, she stepped into the downstairs bathroom and ran a comb through her hair.

She then headed to La Scala to meet Jonathan.

***La Scala***

She told the hostess she was there.

"Mr. Hart is unable to join you, but he left you this note".

"Oh, thank you".

She took the note and headed back to the car, mentally preparing herself for the argument that she was sure they were going to have.

"Find a place, and I will have your things delivered. This is the best way. I will keep the company, and we will split everything else 50/50. I hope in time that you will see this is for the best".

Jennifer was dumbfounded.

She couldn't believe it.

Jonathan had left her.


	2. Crushed Harts

Crushed Harts

***Beach house***

Jennifer went to the ATM and withdrew as much money as she could. She transferred a large sum of money to her personal account as well.

She headed to Target, and bought some clothes, and then headed to the beach house.

She figured she would be able to find a place tomorrow and then move in quickly.

Or maybe she could just demand the beach house. She really did like it there.

She pulled up to the beach house and hit the garage door opener.

As soon as the garage door opened, she saw Jonathan's car.

"Great. He's the last person I want to see tonight".

She walked inside and saw him on the terrace. There were candles lit in the kitchen, and music playing all throughout.

And then she saw her. He had his arm around his secretary, Deanna.

She walked over to the radio and turned the music off.

Jonathan turned around and saw her. He sighed.

He opened the door and came towards her.

"Save it. You can live here. I will take the main house, Max, and Freeway".

She turned around and headed to the car, all the while with tears streaming down her face. She stopped at his car, and used her key to open it, and then took his gate opener before locking it back.

***The next morning***

Jennifer had a sleepless night.

She couldn't believe that he would just throw away their marriage. And it wasn't that he did it, it was the way he did it, cold and unfeeling.

She remembered back to when they couldn't keep their hands off each other. She wondered what changed between them.

She let herself in the gate, and went and wrote Max a note.

"Mr. H. is no longer living here. You are welcome to stay as long as you'd like, and I hope that you do. Freeway will be here also. -Mrs. H."

She left it on the counter and then headed up to bed.

She called for Freeway, and she let him sleep in the bed with her.

She kept telling herself that all she wanted was for him to be happy, but she was dying inside. Jonathan Hart had stolen her heart a long time ago, and as far as she was concerned, nobody else ever could.

***The next morning***

She woke up and came downstairs for breakfast. Max came and sat at the table next to her.

"Are you alright, Mrs. H?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know. It is what it is. He asked me to leave, but I caught him with someone, so I decided I would stay here and he could stay somewhere else".

She put her hand on Max's hand.

"But I am absolutely not kicking you out of here, Max. You can live here indefinitely".

"Thanks, Mrs. H."

Jennifer went upstairs and showered and dressed.

Jonathan had had her things delivered early that morning, and the delivery people had brought it all upstairs.

She grabbed her purse, yelled to Max that she was leaving, and headed out.

She went and saw a lawyer and had them draw up divorce papers. She was giving him the beach house, she was keeping Willow Pond, he was keeping the company, she was keeping her car and one of the Bentley's and they were splitting the rest. She added a note that said Max and Freeway were hers as well. If he wanted to play hardball, she could definitely hold her own.

She had the papers sent to him, and paid a courier to deliver them to him at work.

After she was done, she headed back home, called her editor and took on a few assignments.

***Hart Industries***

The courier came and was shown into Jonathan's office. He signed for the package and opened it.

Divorce papers.

He read her list of requests, and then threw his pen across the room.

Why did this have to hurt so much? Why couldn't she just tell him that she had been having an affair so they could talk about it and work through it?

He got angrier as he read the papers again.

She started this by not being honest. And somehow he was kicked out of his house. Yes, it was their house, but if anyone should be leaving, it should be her, not him. He slid the papers back in the envelope and sealed them shut. He would deal with them later.

Deanna opened the door, and came in his office.

"You ok, Mr. Hart?"

"No, Deanna. I am not ok".

He turned and faced the window.

She smiled a sly smile, and went to him.

She stood behind him, and started rubbing his shoulders.

"You were so kind to me last night, with my boyfriend troubles. Let me return the favor".

As she rubbed his shoulders, he flashed back to all the back massages Jennifer had given him. Her hands were the only ones he wanted touching him, and yet, she had taken them away.

"Mr. Hart, it's not your fault that Mrs. Hart started seeing someone else. If she cannot appreciate you, then she doesn't deserve to have you. Now, stay right there and I will bring you some tea".

She scampered off to the break room to get him some tea.

Something struck a nerve with him. He replayed the conversation he had just had with Deanna.

"It's not your fault…it's not your fault…."

That's when it hit him. Deanna had come to him and said that she needed a safe place to stay because her boyfriend was threatening to hurt her. So, he told her she could stay at the beach house. When he stopped by to check on her to see if she was ok, she had a candlelight dinner waiting and insisted that he join her. When Jennifer had shown up, and told him he could have the beach house, and then left, he remembered that Deanna asked him if he wanted to talk about it and he said no.

He had never told her about Jennifer supposedly seeing someone else.

She came back with his tea, and he decided not to question her about it just yet.

There was a knock at the door.

"Hi, I have a delivery for Mr. Hart. I just need an address of where you want it to go".

"What is it?"

"Boxes of clothes and personal items from a house. 3100 Willow Pond Lane".

Jennifer had used his own trick against him.

He gave him the address to the beach house, and told him he would meet him there in an hour.

After the guy left, Deanna tried to comfort him.

"I'm ok. I am going to go home now, I will see you tomorrow".

"Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?"

"Yes. I am back at my parents".

"Ok good. See you tomorrow".

He grabbed some work files and then left.

He met the delivery guy at the beach house, told him to call his boss and ask for some extra help.

When the extra help showed up 15 minutes later, he paid them each $100 to take the boxes marked clothes up to the third floor.

He brought the rest of them in himself.

He had a hunch, but didn't want it to turn out right.

However, that wasn't in his control.

After the guys left, he jumped in the car and headed back to the office.

He went inside and headed to his floor.

Instead of going to his desk though, he stopped at Deanna's.

Inside her desk, he found pictures of Jennifer from years ago, some that had been touched and photoshopped and some that hadn't.

He found a few more copies of the handwritten notes they had received.

He found a list of Jennifer's boyfriends, from 1970 until they married. Preston Mallard was circled.

At the very bottom of the drawer, there was a calendar. He opened it, and found that she had planned out when to send something and what to send.

He had been such a fool. How could he have believed that Jennifer would see someone else?

He didn't know what he was going to do, but he was determined to at least talk to her and tell her all of this. He really wanted to hug her and hold her close and kiss her, but he knew that was a longshot. He frankly couldn't blame her if she never spoke to him again.

He decided to at least try to talk to her.

He made copies of everything, and replaced the originals with the copies.

He took her calendar and headed out.

***Willow Pond***

Jennifer and Max had just finished dinner. She was sitting on the couch, reading. Freeway was at her feet.

Max was in his room. His private line rang, and he answered it.

"Max, it's Jonathan. I need your help".

"Sure thing, Mr. H."

"Take Freeway outside and come to the gate".

"Right away Mr. H."

Max hung up, and came to the den.

"Freeway, time to go outside. Come on".

He clipped the leash to Freeway's collar and they headed outside.

They headed down to the gate, and Max opened it. Mr. H. was in his car on the other side.

"Meet me at the top of the hill".

He pulled up and parked, and then waited for Max and Freeway.

"Mr. H, what are you doing here? I mean, I am glad to see you, but Mrs. H. might not be".

He leaned down to pet Freeway.

"Hey there boy, I missed you".

"Ok Max. Here is the plan. You and I are going to go in the house. I am going to give Jennifer this envelope and tell her what I know, and then you and I are going to play a few hands of gin in the kitchen. Hopefully, while we are playing the game, she will be looking at the envelope and she will realize that I am telling her the truth about all of this, and listen to my apology".

"That might work, Mr. H. Listen, she told me that I could stay here indefinitely. And I don't want to pick sides. But I don't feel right about leaving her here by herself".

"I am thankful that you didn't leave her, Max. I wish I never had".

He and Max and Freeway opened the door and went inside.

"Ok Mr. H., I will go get the deck of cards. Meet you in the kitchen".

Jennifer sat straight up on the couch.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to visit Max. We are going to have our weekly gin game".

Her face narrowed.

"Oh I see".

He brought Freeway back over to Jennifer.  
"Here you go, boy. Go back to Mommy".

"Oh, and by the way, Jennifer- I apologize for thinking that you were cheating on me. Deanna my secretary was the one sending you and me the packages and pictures. I found everything in her desk. Apparently, she researched your past and contacted some past boyfriends and got the pictures that way. I am sorry I doubted you". He handed her the envelope and headed to the kitchen.

He and Max had just started their gin game, when he heard her get up off the couch and go into the study.

She came back a few minutes later, and put an envelope on the kitchen counter.

"Jonathan, there is an envelope here. Please take it with you when you leave. Max, I am going to bed. See you tomorrow".

She headed upstairs.

Jonathan got up and went to get the envelope.

He opened it and pulled out another copy of the divorce papers. This time, she had signed them.

There was a note on top.

"Nice apology- I have seen more effort out of a snail. If you didn't know by now that you could trust me, you never will. This hurts, but I don't see any way to go forward".

He was crushed.

He and Max played a few hands of Gin, and brainstormed how he could fix it.

They came up with nothing concrete. After about 7 hands, he decided to go back to the beach house.

He snuck upstairs, and crept into her bedroom.

He went over to her side of the bed, leaned down, kissed her on the cheek.

"I love you, and I will never stop loving you".

He kissed her again, and then left quietly.

Max showed him out, and then he headed back to the beach house.


	3. Mended Harts

***Beach House***

Jonathan came in and put his keys on the counter.

He was thinking about how screwed up everything was.

His biggest mistake was just believing what the pictures appeared to show, and not asking her about it. He should have used a private investigator to figure it out. Hell, he should have done a lot of things. But the reality is, he hadn't. He had simply chosen to believe the picture and the notes.

That's when he remembered the phone call.

He had been at work and Deanna had patched a phone call through to him.

"I saw your wife today. She's a lovely woman. She seems very happy. But I can make her much happier. You will be hearing from me again".

It was all making sense now.

He figured that Deanna had her boyfriend make the phone calls. And they contacted Preston Mallard, found out he owned a gallery and ordered some pictures of him. They sent the pictures to him, and the notes to Jennifer. The package was just to make sure that Jennifer couldn't hide it any longer. Deanna had no way of knowing if she had showed Jonathan the note or not, but by having a package delivered, she rightfully assumed he would know.

He got up and made a list.

Fire Deanna.

Apologize to Jennifer sincerely.

Try to change her mind about the divorce.

Do whatever it takes to win her back.

He had an uphill battle on his hands.

***the next morning***

Jonathan got up early and made sure that he was at the office before Deanna.

He saw her when she came in.

"Deanna come in here please".

"Yes, Mr. Hart?"

"We have a busy day today. First up, I need you to call IT and ask them to come to my office. And then I need you to call HR and ask them to see if there are any applicants to fill the secretarial positions, and then finally, take these forms to HR and have them signed. After that stunt you pulled trying to split up Jennifer and I, you are fired. That's all, thank you".

She was stunned.

"Mr. Hart, I don't know what you are talking about."

"Oh, I believe you do. First, I get a phone call, telling me that my wife would be much happier with someone else. Then, I get an envelope with pictures of my wife with someone else. The intent was to make think she was cheating, when really, it was a picture of her kissing someone she had dated before we ever met. Then she gets a note making her think someone is after her. And when I see it, I accuse her of seeing someone else, which is exactly what you wanted. After you figured out that we had marital discord, you called me pretending that you and your boyfriend split up, so I would let you stay at my beach house. And you had the nerve to plan it all out in a diary that I found in your desk here at the office. So, now I bet you are wondering how you slipped up. Well, you see, I never told you that I was concerned that Mrs. Hart was seeing someone else. So, yesterday when you were trying to comfort me after I received divorce papers, which I am sure you opened and resealed, you mentioned it. And it hit me, that you wouldn't know about that unless you were in on it, or I had told you about it. So, I came up here after you had left, and found pictures, copies of notes, the calendar, all of it in your desk. So, again, please take these papers to HR, make sure they are signed, and then you may pack your things".

She was crying.

"I'm sorry Mr. Hart, it's just that I can make you so much happier than she can. I appreciate you more than she does because I see how hard you work. I can make you happy at work and at home, if you would just give you and I a chance."

"Jennifer is the only woman for me, Deanna. And because of you, and my stubborn pride, I may have lost her forever. There is no us between you and me and there never will be. Now, if you don't leave, I am going to call security".

She sadly walked out.

Jonathan called Max's private line.

"Hey Max- did you find anything?"

"Yes sir. Just like you suspected, the package had a bug in it. I destroyed it for you".

"Thanks Max. How is she?"

"Quiet this morning. Barely ate anything for breakfast."

"Gosh, see what you can do to cheer her up, will ya Max? I promise, I am trying to fix this".

"I believe you, Mr. H".

They hung up.

*****That afternoon*****

Jonathan couldn't concentrate. He didn't know how he was going to get Jennifer back, but he was damn determined to get her back.

He sat and stared out the window most of the afternoon, until it hit him.

He quick turned around and looked up a phone number on his computer, and then made a phone call. He just knew this was going to work.

***Willow Pond***

Jennifer had heard the phone ringing, and rushed to answer it.

"Hello?"

"Jennifer, Hi! It's Marcia. I have a very important assignment for you. There is a magazine that wants to do an article on someone. They saw your work on prostitution and a few other articles and specifically requested that you do the interview. In fact, they insisted and they won't take no for an answer. They even sent over some questions that they want you to ask him. It's about 10 questions, and they want you to come up with about 20 more. Your deadline is 7 days from now".

"Who am I interviewing?"

"Jonathan Hart, your husband".

"Marcia, we are divorcing. And tell me-did he put you up to this?"

"I was told that he okayed you doing the interview. He also promised that because of his busy schedule, it wouldn't take more than 30 minutes tops".

"Marcia, we are getting divorced. And besides, how can I be non-biased, hell I have been sleeping with him for a while now".

"I know. But you can also get him to answer questions that others couldn't. And you are the only one who knows where he is all the time, anyways. Look, I have to go. Just please make sure that you ask him the questions that the magazine requested, and a few of your own, and then send it back to me".

Jennifer hung up. How in the hell was she going to get out of this?

***Later that afternoon***

She had made up a list of rather bland questions to ask him, such as what was one goal he would like to accomplish, and what were his driving factors behind growing Hart Industries. Marcia absolutely would not under any circumstances allow her to not do the interview. So, she decided to make the best of it, and just get it over with. Besides, she was missing him like crazy, and grieving the end of her marriage. It would be nice to hear his voice and see her again.

She placed a call to his office, and wasn't surprised that he had a new secretary. If Deanna had really been the one that had sent the pictures and the notes and tried to break them up, then she could definitely see him firing her.

She left a message that he needed to call her to schedule the interview.

About 30 minutes later, he called her.

"Hi. Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I'm sure I don't. But I am also sure I wasn't given an option, so it's happening. What day works best for you?"

"Well, none of them really. But I could meet you somewhere at night. I tell you what, why don't you come to the beach house one night, and we can do the interview there?"

She reluctantly agreed.

"Jonathan, we need to be on the same page here. Just business".

"Absolutely. I respect your work ethic, 100%. How about tonight? We can make it a dinner meeting if you want".

"Um, ok. 7?"

"See you then."

They hung up. As she put the phone in the cradle, she blew a kiss, like she always did on the phone to him.

***Beach house***

Jonathan had left work early, headed to La Scala, placed a delivery order for 7:15, and then headed to the beach house. He stopped and got her flowers and some of her favorite sparkling water. He made sure that her favorite blanket was on the couch, since it was going to be a little chilly tonight.

He was trying to be thoughtful and make her feel at home, without it being obvious.

She arrived promptly at 7.

"Come on in."

"Hello".

"I ordered dinner, it should be here soon. We can start now if you'd like, or we can wait till after dinner".

"Whatever works best for you".

"Well, I want you to be comfortable. I stopped and picked up some of your favorite sparkling water- would you like some?"

"That would be lovely, thank you".

She was trying to not let him get to her, but if he looked at her one more time, she was going to have restrain herself from jumping into his arms.

He had his head in the fridge getting her water. He was glad she couldn't see how hard this was for him. He wanted her and he wanted her bad.

He got her a glass and got her the crushed ice, just like she liked it. He opened the bottle and poured her some.

"Extra lime, right?"

"Yes".

He threw in some lime pieces and then brought her the drink. Their hands touched. They both felt it, and they both hoped the other didn't notice.

"Ok, why don't we start with the questions I was given, and then we can break when dinner gets here, and then resume afterwards?"

"Certainly".

They sat down on the couch.

"What is the driving force behind your work at Hart Industries, and growing the company?"

"In the beginning, it was just to make money and sell products. I would see a good business deal, and I would take it and grow it. But then, after I got married, it was all about being a good husband and provider, so that my wife never had to want for anything".

Jennifer typed his answers.

"What is the best business deal you ever made, and what sets it apart from other deals?"

"Kingston Motors, in London. I was there to make a deal and ended up meeting my beautiful wife".

She gave him a pointed look.

"Do you really want that in there? We will probably be divorced by the time it's printed".

"It's ok. Keep it in there".

"Question three. What is your greatest asset as the CEO of your company?"

"This is an interesting question. There is a quality about me that works at the office and fails me other places. In the office, I communicate with hundreds of people all day long, through various means, such as the phone, memos, in person, board meetings, deals. But when I am not at work, and I am, for example, at home, I have a hard time communicating about what I am passionate about. That is definitely an area I am trying to work on".

Jennifer was beginning to get annoyed. They had promised that it would be strictly business.

She took a deep breath and continued with the questions.

"What is something you will always regret?"

"The demise of my marriage. It was 100% my fault."

"Jonathan-"

"Leave it. It's ok".

"Question 5-what is your personal motto?"

"Well, until recently, it was "don't forget to stop and smell the roses'. But I think I have changed it. I think from now on, it's going to be "Happy wife, happy life". If you don't have a happy wife, you are miserable, as I am without mine".

"Jonathan, I am editing that".

"Jennifer, it's the truth. I am miserable without you. If you leave that part out, it won't be an honest interview".

"As far as I am concerned, this interview was never honest. I shouldn't be the one interviewing you at all."

"I wouldn't do it with anyone else. It's always going to be you, babe".

There was a knock on the door. He got up, and went and paid for their dinner, and brought it in. He put it in the kitchen, and started getting plates out. She put the typewriter to the side, and went to help him.

"Jonathan, what do you want to drink?"

"Well, let's see what there is. I have some white wine, I have some champagne and I have water."

"Yes, so which do you want?" She was looking at him with an annoyed look on his face.

"White wine, but only if you join me".

"Sure".

He plated their meals and took them to the table. She poured their wine and took it to the table.

He turned on the music for background noise.

He pulled her chair out for her, like he always had.

She looked at him softly. "Thank you".

"Do you recognize the meal?"

She hadn't even looked.

"Your favorite, from La Scala."

"That was very sweet of you, Jonathan".

They ate in silence a few moments, and then she spoke up.

"Did you sign the papers yet?"

He shook his head. "I meant to, but with the developments at the office, it slipped my mind."

"What developments?"

"Tell me something, did you read the contents of the envelope that I handed you at the house?"

"No. I decided I wanted to put it behind me so I went and put the envelope in the desk".

"Can't say I blame you. Well, let me just tell you everything".

She nodded.

"Last week, I received a phone call at work from a man who stated that you were very beautiful, and that he would make you very happy. I dismissed it as a prank. Then, an hour later, I received a picture of you kissing someone. That same picture that I showed you in the bathroom. You received the note at home, and then we received the package. And the part that was bothering me the most about the package was why it was delivered in the middle of the night. Anyways, after you came here and saw Deanna here, and then left, she asked me if I was ok, and I said I didn't want to talk about it. She had told me that she thought her boyfriend was going to kill her, so I agreed to let her stay here for a night. The next day, you sent divorce papers. They were delivered to the office. I assume she opened them and resealed the envelope, but I don't know for sure. She came into my office, started trying to comfort me, and mentioned that it wasn't my fault that you were seeing someone else. Except, I had never told her that I thought you were. So, after she went home, I looked in her desk, found everything I put in the envelope- pictures that she had sent me of you kissing Preston Mallard, copies of the notes that you were sent, invoices for the package contents, and a calendar where she had planned out what to send to each of us and when, with phone numbers of your ex-boyfriends. I made copies of everything, put it in the envelope and devised a plan to see you. I called Max and told him to meet me at the gate, and filled him in on the plan. I was trying to play it cool, so I went with the cavalier apology. I instantly regretted it. This morning, I went to work early, so I could see her when she got there. I fired her, and she admitted it. She said you don't appreciate me, but that she could."

"Wow. That's quite a story".

"Yes, it is".

"Jonathan, I do appreciate you. I have always appreciated you".

"Darling, she was the one who said you didn't, not me. I don't doubt your appreciation for a second".

She nodded.

They finished eating, and Jennifer rinsed the dishes and then put them in the dishwasher.

"Thank you for a lovely dinner".

"Thank you for coming".

"Shall we finish the interview?"

"By all means".

They sat back down on the couch.

"Would you like some more wine?"

"Sure".

"I'll get it".

He got up and got her a fresh glass, and then brought it to her.

"Thank you".

"Ok, next question. We only have a few more left. What is the best experience you ever had?"

"In London, meeting my beautiful wife". She looked up at him, and gave him a shy smile.

"That's very sweet, Jonathan".

She cleared her throat.

"Ok, next question. What is one thing you would like to accomplish in the future?"

"Saving my marriage before it's too late".

"Jonathan, you promised!"

"I know. But it's how I feel. Nothing else matters than fixing this with you. You are my everything. Nothing else even pales in comparison. I am miserable without you. I am so sorry I didn't trust you, because I do trust you. That picture was very convincing and I should have asked you what your side was and talked to you before I got mad. Darling, I promise I will spend the rest of my life making it up to you".

She put her pen down and rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"Jonathan, can we just continue the interview?"

"Darling, there is no interview. I own the magazine that you were told wanted to interview me. I set up the whole thing with Marcia, so that I could apologize to you the way you deserve, and spend time with you in hopes of resolving this".

She looked at him.

"Come here, darling. Come on. I am sorry, I truly am".

She scooted closer and snuggled up to him.

He ran his fingers through her hair, and held her close.

He could feel her start to cry.

"What is it, baby?"

"I was so sure I had lost you. I mean, I knew I didn't cheat on you, and I would never and have never. But I really and truly thought you were gone for good. I didn't want to divorce you at all. I only filed because you sent that horrible note about being out of the house and I didn't want it to drag on. And then when you showed up at the house to play gin with Max and didn't even come and kiss me, I knew I had lost you forever. I have been so scared without you".

"Shh. Ok, ok. It's alright".

She sat up and looked in his eyes. "I don't want to divorce you, Jonathan. I love you".

"I know. I understand. I don't want to divorce you either. I am more in love with you than I could ever explain".

He kissed her tenderly.

She sat up and leaned her whole body against him.

"So what do we do now?"

"Well, in the morning, I will call the lawyer, and tell them that the divorce is off. And we have to figure out going back home, or staying here. I already hired another secretary, so I think that's it".

She nodded.

"Darling?"

"What?"

"Come home?"

He nodded, and kissed her passionately.

After they came up for air, she looked at him.

"What else did you have planned for tonight?"

"I was hoping we could dance a little, and if we ended up in bed, that was ok too".

She stood up. She grabbed his hand. He gladly took it, and stood up as well.

She wrapped her arms around his back and shoulders and they started to dance. She rested her cheek against his and let him move her around the room. After a few dances, they decided to grab her things and some essentials for him, and they headed home.

***Willow Pond***

Jonathan followed her home from beach house, and she let him in the gate. He parked behind her on the driveway.

She got out of her car, and handed him the gate opener.

"Thanks, darling". He leaned over and kissed her.

She helped him with a few bags and then they headed inside.

Max was away at a poker game. Freeway came running, and seemed to be much happier seeing them together.

They locked the door behind them, and headed straight upstairs.

After they changed for bed, he quickly unpacked his suitcase, and then came to bed with her.

She snuggled up beside him.

"Darling, I want you to know, I forgive you for all this. You are human, and when you look at the big picture, this was really just a big misunderstanding. I am just glad to have you home".

"That's the best thing I have heard all day."

He kissed her passionately, and then reached up and turned out the light.


End file.
